Long Live Death - Unclesally*s, 28th May 2009

For two decades as a trio on the road, the Manic Street Preachers say goodbye with their new album 'Journal For Plague Lovers' a dead believed band member. New at the end - and all right?

It happened on February 1, 1995. During the preparations for a gig, the tour manager reports anxiously by phone and inquires frantically about the whereabouts of the guitarist. Nobody knows where he is! We're talking about Richey James Edwards, who not only did his best on the guitar at Manic Street Preachers, but was also in charge of songwriting. "It's not that we expected it back then, but everyone in the manics knew what risk Richey represented. And suddenly he disappeared forever, from now on. "

It's amazing that singer James Dean Bradfield speaks so calmly about all this. Zorn seems completely alien to him and his Sidekick - bassist Nicky Wire - smiles even a smile on the lips: "At first we were very angry, that the guy just made it so dust and we had to deal with the three of them in a threesome. Meanwhile, we have found our inner peace! "

What moved the rest of the band for the first time in 14 years and five albums to record a whole album in which Richey Edwards is again more than present: "Last year we were presented with the NME Godlike Genius Award and did not feel comfortable with it," Wire explains apologetically. The reason, however, was not false modesty, but the absence of former, long-dead band member Edwards.

"When we stood there, I got the idea that it would only be fair if Rich got his share and we completed one of his left-over song designs as a tribute," recalls Bradfield and did not suspect at this time, of course, that this idea her entire New album 'Journal For Plague Lovers' would influence: "It was so fast in the studio, that we wanted to process more lyrics of him - and suddenly over 20 tracks were finished. So we just made a record out of it! "

A great story, just because the Manics felt uncomfortable at last, so their sound drifted into kitschy - even cooperations with other bands did not help. Logically, 'Journal For Plague Lovers' has become their loudest and most brutal album in two decades:' We've turned up the amplifiers to the tune of music to accompany Richey's lyrics. I would say that the new songs Manic Street Preachers Rock are in their purest form. That makes me incredibly happy."